Geophysical surveying (e.g., seismic, electromagnetic) is a technique where two- or three-dimensional “pictures” of the state of an underground formation are taken. Geophysical surveying takes place not only on land, but also in marine environments (e.g., oceans, large lakes). Marine geophysical surveying systems frequently use a plurality of streamers which contain sensors to detect energy reflected from underground formations below the water bottom. Seismic streamers include sensors for detecting seismic signals reflected from underground formations below the water bottom, including formations containing hydrocarbon deposits.
In terms of area covered by a marine geophysical survey, better economic efficiency is achieved with wider streamer spreads that include a number of sensor streamers. However, in shallow water (e.g., less than about 300 meters) the economic efficiency is offset to some extent by incomplete data for shallow reflectors at the edges of the streamer spread.
The various views of the drawings are not necessarily to scale.